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Getting pre-approved before shopping for a new home is a smart idea, but what if you don’t find the right home quickly? How long does that pre-approval last?
Pre-approval Defined
Before going out with a real estate agent to look for the perfect property, it is wise to get pre-approved with a mortgage lender. This means allowing the lender to run your credit and take a look at your income and assets to determine how much mortgage funding you qualify for. A pre-approval gives you a top number for your house budget to help define your search.
It also gives you credibility wit...

When you take out a mortgage loan, your lender puts a lot of trust in you to repay the loan. Lenders can do this because they do thorough financial background checks on borrowers before agreeing to lend money. Your interest rate will be based on how credit-worthy you are based on those checks. Examining bank statements is one of the ways lenders check for eligibility. If you want to have better odds of being approved for a mortgage, before you apply, make sure that your bank accounts do not include these three things in the last two months of statements:
1. Non-Sufficient Fund (NSF) c...

In the homebuying process, if you find yourself in the enviable position of having more cash than needed for a minimum down payment, it may be difficult to know just how much you should put down. A larger down payment can bring plenty of benefits, but is it always best to contribute the biggest down payment possible?
First, remember that every loan program has its own down payment requirements. FHA loans for example require a minimum of 3.5% while jumbo loans will require at least 10%. To get a conventional loan without PMI you’ll need 20%. USDA and VA, by contrast, do not requi...